Local News in Brief : Ex-CHP Officer Held in Attempted Robbery

A former California Highway Patrol officer from Canyon Country was arrested this week in connection with the attempted robbery of an El Monte market where he allegedly posed as an FBI agent. He is also a suspect in the robbery of a market in Pacoima, authorities said.

William Francis Wilson, 43, resigned from the CHP in 1978 after working in Newhall and West Los Angeles for 13 years, CHP spokesman Kent Milton said. He has operated Wilson Security Co., a private investigation firm in Canyon Country, since then, authorities said.

Wilson was arrested Monday outside the Carlton Market in El Monte and is being held in Los Angeles County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bail.

“Apparently, he would spring the false identification and indicate that he wished to examine the currency for counterfeit,” FBI spokesman Fred Regan said.

Wilson is suspected of robbing the Pacoima market in April of between $90,000 and $100,000, Los Angeles police said.

He is scheduled to appear in San Fernando Municipal Court on July 8 for a hearing on the robbery and attempted robbery charges, authorities said.

Because of his arrest, Wilson failed to show up for a court appearance Tuesday in Glendale Municipal Court on forgery charges unrelated to the robberies. Glendale police said he is suspected of forging $40,000 worth of checks from a client.